1) US soul singer, songwrit… Read Full Bio ↴D'Angelo is the name of more than one artist
1) US soul singer, songwriter & producer
2) Brazilian jazz/samba group
1) D'Angelo (born Michael Eugene Archer on 11 February 1974 in Richmond, VA, United States) is a neo-soul singer, keyboardist, and guitarist. He has released three albums, "Brown Sugar" (1995), "Voodoo" (2000), and "Black Messiah" as D'Angelo and the Vanguard (2014).
D'Angelo signed a publishing deal with EMI Music in 1991 after catching the attention of record executives with a demo tape. He penned the hit song "U Will Know" on the Jason's Lyric soundtrack. It was performed by Black Men United for the Jason's Lyric motion picture soundtrack. Shortly after, he was signed by Gary Harris and he began recording his debut album for EMI records.
Brown Sugar was released in June 1995. Though sales were sluggish at first, the album was eventually a hit, due in large part to "Lady," a Top Ten hit on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, peaking at #10. The album earned platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America, following sales in excess of one million copies in the U.S., while its total sales have been estimated within the range of 1.5 million to over two million copies. The album helped give commercial visibility to the burgeoning neo soul movement of the 1990s, along with debut albums by Maxwell, Erykah Badu, and Lauryn Hill. The album was a critical success as well, and appeared on many critics' "best of" lists for the year.
Following his debut album's success, D'Angelo went into a four and a half year absence from the music scene and releasing solo work. His recordings for soundtracks included Belly ("Devil's Pie"), frequently singing covers like "Girl You Need a Change of Mind" (Eddie Kendricks, Get on the Bus), "She's Always in My Hair" (Prince, Scream 2) and "Heaven Must Be Like This" (The Ohio Players, Down in the Delta), as well as appearing on Lauryn Hill's landmark The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill on the duet "Nothing Even Matters".
The much-delayed follow-up to Brown Sugar, Voodoo, was finally released in 2000. It debuted at #1 and went on to win two Grammy Awards, one for Best R&B Album, and the other for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. The lead single, 1999's "Left & Right" (featuring Method Man and Redman) did well, but it was the second single, "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" (a tribute to artist Prince), that became a huge R&B hit buoyed by an innovative yet infamous video featuring a nude D'Angelo from his face to his hips while singing the song. The video was nominated for 4 MTV Video Music Awards and currently ranks #44 in VH1's list of the 100 Greatest Videos. He also performed "Be Here" (with Raphael Saadiq) from Saadiq's album Instant Vintage.
After the release D'Angelo embarked on what would become one of the most fabled series of live soul shows in history, "The Voodoo Tour." Consisting of a live group entitled "the Soultronics," (presumed to have been assembled by Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson of The Roots) which engulfed arena-size stages with various dancers and instrument players, it was one of the most attended shows of the year. The tour was taken all around the world, one of the most notable performances being the Free Jazz Festival in Brazil. The live show was a thinly-disguised homage to Prince's late 80's shows, in its grandeur and conceptual stage set-up & setlist. Slum Village (then in its original line-up of Jay Dee, Baatin & T3) opened for D'Angelo on several dates, and soul-tinged R&B singer Anthony Hamilton sang backup in the band.
In 2002, Q magazine named him in their list of the "50 Bands To See Before You Die", and in 2003 Voodoo was ranked at number 488 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. Pitchfork Media rated it at #44 on their list of the best albums of the 2000s.
Devil's Pie
D'Angelo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Why ask why 'til we fry
Watch us all stand in line
For a slice of the devil's pie
Drugs and thugs, women, wine
Three or four at a time
Watch them all stand in line
For a slice of the devil's pie
Who am I to justify
All the evil in our eye
When I myself feel the high
From all that I despise?
Behind the jail or in the grave
I have to lay in this bed I made
And if I die before I wake
I hope the Lord don't hesitate
To get to heaven, went through hell
Tell my peeps all is well
All them fools whose soul's for sale
Sitting next to the Jezebel
Demons screamin' in my ear
All my anger, all my fear
If I holler, let them hear
In this spinning sphere
Fuck the slice, want the pie
Why ask why 'til we fry
Watch us all stand in line
For a slice of the devil's pie
Drugs and thugs, women, wine
Three or four at a time
Watch them all stand in line
For a slice of the devil's pie
Main ingredients (uh) to this dish (yeah)
Goes like this, here's the list
Materialistic, greed and lust, jealousy, envious
Bread and dough, cheddar cheese
Flash and stash, cash and cream
Temperature's at a high degree
Where niggas come to feast
Hell is this all about?
Apocalypse, ain't no doubt
Everybody's hoing out
All the loot, all the clout
Right or wrong, do or die
Only vengeance could pacify
Watch your back and so will I
In these days and time
Fuck the slice, want the pie
Why ask why 'til we fry
Watch us all stand in line
For a slice of the devil's pie
Drugs and thugs, women, wine
Three or four at a time
Watch them all stand in line
For a slice of the devil's pie
(Let's the cut the pie)
(Tryna eat)
(Come one, come all)
(Come one, come all)
(If you want, let's cut the pie)
(Pie, up on the plate)
(Check it out)
(Mark of the beast)
(This how it be in this everlasting game)
Oh, whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa
Oh
Oh-oh-oh, whoa-whoa-whoa
Ah
Ain't no justice, it's just us
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust
Time has come for most of us
To choose in which God we trust
I know I was born to die
Searching to find a peace of mind
With eighty-five, dumb and blind
There can be no compromise
Fuck the slice (yeah), want the pie (uh)
Why ask why 'til we fry ('til we gon' fry)
Watch us all stand in line
For a slice of the devil's pie (yeah, yeah)
Drugs and thugs (oh-oh), women, wine (huh)
Three or four at a time
Uh, wait a minute
Uh, let me tell you 'bout a slice of the devil's pie (oh-oh)
Uh, said everybody out there can get down with the slice of the devil's pie (oh-oh-oh, huh)
For a slice of the devil's pie
Little woman in the streets sell her fuckin' body for a slice of the devil's pie (oh-oh)
Niggas killin' each other in the streets for a slice of the devil's pie
Say what?
All in line, all in line (oh)
For a slice of the devil's pie (yeah)
All in line, all in line (give me no)
For a slice of the devil's pie
All in line, all in line (what? Huh?)
For a slice of the devil's pie (yeah)
All in line, all in line (I don't give a fuck, I ain't goin' out for the)
For a slice of the devil's pie (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
In "Devil's Pie," D'Angelo reflects on the destructive nature of greed and materialism, particularly within the music industry. He states that people would rather have the whole (the "pie") instead of just a part (the "slice"), and that this insatiable desire for money and possessions leads to an endless cycle of hedonism and corruption.
The song touches on several themes, including addiction, temptation, and the dangerous allure of good fortune. D'Angelo laments the way that people have become so obsessed with money and power that they have lost sight of what really matters in life. He also acknowledges his own struggles with temptation and desire, admitting that he too has been drawn in by the allure of wealth and fame.
Overall, "Devil's Pie" is a blistering critique of American culture and the way that it values materialism over everything else. D'Angelo urges listeners to resist the temptation to pursue wealth and power at all costs, and to instead focus on building meaningful relationships and finding true happiness.
Line by Line Meaning
Fuck the slice want the pie
I want the whole thing, not just a piece
Why ask why, till we fry
We won't stop until it's too late
Watch us all, stand in line
Everyone is doing it, following the trend
For a slice of the devil's pie
For a taste of something dangerous and alluring
Drugs and thugs, women wine
Indulgences that bring temporary pleasure
Three or four, at a time
Excess, hedonism
Who am i, to justify
Who am I to make excuses for my own bad behavior
All the evil in our eye
All the wrongdoing and corruption we see
When I myself, feel the high
I am also guilty of indulging in bad behavior
From all that I despise
Which I claim to hate
Behind the jail or in the grave
The consequences of our actions
I have to lay, in this bed I made
We must accept responsibility for our actions
If I die, before I wake
Acknowledging that death can come at any time
Hope the Lord don't hesitate
Hope to be judged fairly
Get 2 heaven, went through hell
Striving for redemption after experiencing difficult times
Tell my peeps, all is well
Reassuring loved ones
All them fools, whose soul's 4 sale
Those who sell out their morals
Sitting next to the Jezebel
In the company of temptation
Demons screaming, in my ear
Being tormented by internal struggles
All my anger, all my fear
Emotional baggage
If I holler, let them hear
Asking for help, reaching out
Main ingredients 2 this dish
The components of this dangerous lifestyle
Goes like this, here's the list
Listing out the things that lead to downfall
Materialistic, greed and lust, jealousy, envious
Desires that lead to destructive behavior
Bread and dough, cheddar cheese,
Money and the luxuries it provides
flash and stash, cash and cream
Showing off wealth and enjoying it
Temperatures, at a high degree
Living life to the fullest, taking risks
Where niggas come 2 feast
A place of indulgence and excess
Hell's this, all about
Questioning the value of this lifestyle
Apocalypse, ain't no doubt
The inevitable end of this way of life
Everybody's ho'ing out, all the loot all the clout
Everyone is trying to get ahead, morality be damned
Right or wrong
Moral ambiguity
Do or die
All or nothing
Only the vengeance, will pacify
Desiring revenge to make things right
Watch your back
Be careful, look out for yourself
And so will I
Acknowledging the need for self-preservation
Ain't no justice
The world is not fair
It's just us
We are on our own
Ashes 2 ashes
The inevitability of death
Dust 2 dust
The end of life
Time has come, for most of us
The urgency of living in the present
2 choose in which, God we trust
Our individual beliefs and values
I know I, was born 2 die
The acceptance of mortality
Searching 2 find
The pursuit of happiness
Piece of mind
Inner peace
With eighty five, dumb and blind
People who are ignorant, unaware
There can be no compromise
We must stay true to our values
All in line, all in line,
Everyone is following the same path
For a slice of the devil's pie
For a piece of the dangerous and tempting lifestyle
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Michael D'angello Archer, Christopher E Martin
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Popu_GTB
Samples in this song:
Teddy Pendergrass - And If I Had
Michel Colombier - Jericho Jerk
Raekwon - Wu-Gambinos (Vocals)0:20 2:49
The Beatnuts ft. Big Pun - Off the Books (Vocals) 2:53
InI - Fakin Jax (Vocals) 3:02
Natruel, Shabaka the Disciple, Wicked Will and Mr. Eon ft. L-Fudge - The Big Daddy Anthem (Vocals) 3:04
Fat Joe - Success (Vocals) 3:06
@Pride317
Voodoo Album
Playa Playa 7:06
Devil's Pie 5:21
Left and Right 4:46
The Line 5:16
Send it On 5:56
Chicken Grease 4:38
One Mo Gin 6:13
The Root 6:33
Spanish Joint 5:44
Feel Like Makin Love 6:22
Greatdayndamornin/Booty 7:35
Untitled (How Does It Feel) 7:10
Africa 6:13
Total=1:18:56
Favorite Songs
1. Devil's Pie
2. Untitled (How Does It Feel)
3. Spanish Joint
4. Send it On
5. Chicken Grease
6. Africa
7. The Root
8. Greatdayndamornin/Booty
9. Feel Like Makin Love
10. One Mo Gin
11. Playa Playa
12. Left and Right
13. The Line
@gclark-o4506
This is one song I couldnt get out of my head after watching Belly... Just so smooth and meaningful...
@TahreekBolton
Just finished watching it and came here lol. Love this song. I love the timing in which they chose to play it.
@MiamiBlossom
I remember this song being in belly, but I really didn't start paying attention to it until I heard The Game's song Carmen Electra.
@krystal2157
Me too. I was just telling my son about Belly, and this song got stuck in my head.
@pipes6414
Best year of my life!!! It molded me into who i am. 11years old with this album and Belly!!!! Oh and miseducation and brandy!!!!!
@boltnation6456
Been bumping this for 17 years and never gonna stop
@damiandeshields8166
just bumped it again today lol!
@curtisw8752
Same as that!! D angelo is the best!!
@ProfessorGreentree
The Memphis Strangler ain't neva gon' stop! No, seriously... William Montgomery will never stop bumping this.
@nuknuknuk111
I think this song really went over people's heads